The Brighton Edit – Travel Tips & Tricks

September 15, 2017

I love traveling. I think traveling is good for the soul and helps you to grow in a very special way. I have been very lucky to have done a good amount of traveling and overtime I’ve acquired some reflexes when it comes to planning and preparing.

I thought today I would share them with you in case you are planning an out of season getaway or for future holidays.

Know Your Budget

That can seem sensible but I know so many people who go on holidays without having an idea of their budget. Knowing how much you can spend can give you an idea of how you will get around the city or wherever you’re going (bus, uber, by foot?), how much you can spend for food, where you’ll be able to sleep, etc… I find it comforting to know in advance how I will spend the amount of money put aside so that you don’t find yourself eating potatoes for the next 6 months…

What I like to do is decide on a general amount and then decide how much to spend on each category accommodation, food, get around and pleasure (usually makeup and clothes).

Get Online – YT, bloggers especially travel bloggers

Any online addict will tell you this – there is everything you need to know online. Gone or the days when you needed to buy a travel guide, now everything is online: online reviews, Youtube, TripAdvisor and bloggers are your best friends. It’s comforting I think to read or learn about someone’s experience when they have already been where you are going. They can give you recommendations about where to go, eat and sleep.

Plan how you’ll travel – plane? carry-on or checked luggaged?

Depending on whether you want to bring things (souvenirs, clothes etc…) back home, it’s important to know in advance if you want to only travel with a carry-on (cheaper) or have a checked luggage (more space). Depending on each, you won’t travel the same because of bag check-ins and collecting them afterwards.

Don’t overpack – bring what you’ll use

Packing. Overpacking can sound like a safe action because the more you have, the less you will need. However, it can mean not being able to bring as much as you’d like or having to carry a 20kg suitcase back and to the airport and depending on when you can check in you hotel/airbnb/or whatever, this can become very, very annoying. So when packing I decide on full outfits I will wear and only take a spare underwear, pair of socks and top. I don’t take full size bottles with me for anything but rather travel friendly bottles and pots and a toothbrush I’ll throw away there as well as an almost tube of toothpaste.

Visit what you can see on postcards (mom friend tip)

This advice I got from my mom’s friend with whom we travelled to Brighton. We had planned in advance museums, parks and other activities to do but the weather was so nice there and it ended up being a bit too expensive for us, we weren’t sure what to do next. That’s when she said “well, let’s look at the postcards that’s how to know where to go right? Because otherwise it wouldn’t be on them”. And that’s what we did and it was perfect.